2024 – PRAYER POINTS JUST BEFORE ANY FASTING PROGRAMME!
The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) places a significant emphasis on prayer and fasting as foundational spiritual disciplines. These practices are central to the church’s mission of fostering spiritual growth, personal transformation, and a deeper connection with God.
Importance of Prayer and Fasting in RCCG
Spiritual Renewal and Empowerment
RCCG organizes various prayer and fasting programs throughout the year. These programs serve as periods of seeking God’s face, spiritual rejuvenation, and seeking divine intervention in personal and corporate matters. They are designed to help members deepen their relationship with God, experience spiritual breakthroughs, and align themselves with God’s purpose for their lives.
Corporate and Individual Fasting Initiatives
Fasting within RCCG often involves collective fasting where members, guided by the church leadership, set aside specific periods to abstain from food or dedicate time to intensive prayer. Additionally, individual fasting is encouraged as a means of seeking personal spiritual growth, breakthroughs, and guidance from God.
Special Periods of Fasting and Prayer
The RCCG typically observes annual fasting and prayer periods, notably the 50-day marathon fasting and prayer program at the beginning of the year. During this time, members engage in focused prayer sessions, seeking God’s guidance, spiritual empowerment, and personal transformation.
Spiritual Warfare and Intercession
Prayer and fasting in RCCG also serve as a way to engage in spiritual warfare and intercession. Members pray for various concerns, including personal needs, family matters, societal challenges, and global issues, believing in the power of collective prayer to bring about change.
Teaching and Guidance
The church leadership, under the guidance of the General Overseer, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, provides teachings and guidance on the significance of prayer and fasting in the life of a believer. This includes practical advice on fasting, the spiritual benefits it brings, and the importance of a heart posture aligned with seeking God’s will.
Community and Unity
RCCG’s fasting and prayer programs also foster a sense of community and unity among members. Believers come together in solidarity, supporting each other through prayer, sharing experiences, and collectively seeking God’s intervention in their lives and the world.
Pray the prayers below for a week or days before your fast begins!
- My Father, I thank you for giving me the desire to embark on the forthcoming
fast in Jesus name.
2. Father, I give You praise for the answered prayers of my previous fasting
exercise, in Jesus name.
3. O Lord, let nothing hinder me; forgive me of my sins and have mercy upon
me before this fasting exercise, in Jesus name.
4. My Father, I need Your grace and strength to begin and end this fast
successfully without any health problems, in Jesus name.
5. My Father, help me not to take this fast in vain, in Jesus name.
6. O Lord, remove my mind from the desire of the sin of fornication, in Jesus
name
7. Jesus Christ, the Yoke Breaker, use this fasting exercise to break my
yoke, in Jesus name.
8. O Lord, help me not to miss my expected blessings in this upcoming
fast, in Jesus name.
9. Every power assigned to close my heavens during this fasting exercise,
die by fire and thunder, in Jesus name.
10. Any problem that forces me to embark on this fasting exercise shall be
over forever, in Jesus name.
11. My Father, my miracles shall not pass me by during this fasting program,
in Jesus name.
12. Every power on assignment to stop me during this fasting program, be
disgraced in Jesus name.
13. My Father, during this fast, I shall encounter my divine blessings, in
Jesus name.
14. I challenge every power that wants to increase my affliction before this
fasting program; they shall be frustrated by fire, in Jesus name.
15. Now START CUTTING DOWN ON YOUR FOOD INTAKE and GET
2024 – PRAYER POINTS JUST BEFORE ANY FASTING PROGRAMME!
Fasting is voluntarily abstaining from food or other legitimate enjoyment, for a specified period, and for spiritual purposes. We can fast from food, technology or entertainment. Fasting is willing to set aside legitimate appetites of the body, whether it is food, entertainment or technology for a specified period of time and concentrate on praying and seeking God. It not only lends a note of urgency and persistence to our praying but it is also a powerful, personal discipline to train our will, to develop self-control and tune our spiritual sensitivity towards God. We don’t fast to try to manipulate or force God into action. God answers according to His will (1 John.5:14-15). Instead, fasting and praying aligns us to the purpose God has for us. Often we have ‘tunnel vision’ and only see the immediate but God sees around the corner and moves us towards that. Though we may not fully understand the mystery of fasting and prayer, I believe that when we willingly set aside ‘appetites’ of the flesh” to seek God, (a) we are clearing the space for Him to come and speak with us and (b) we are calling out to Him to quench our thirsty hearts with His Presence.
CLICK HERE TO READ:==> RCCG 100 Days Fasting for 2024
The Spiritual Dynamics of Christian Prayer and Fasting
Foundations of Prayer and Fasting
Prayer and fasting are integral elements deeply rooted in Christian tradition and scripture. Both practices hold a central place in spiritual growth, offering believers a powerful means of seeking God’s presence, guidance, and intervention in their lives.
Prayer: Communion with the Divine
Prayer stands as the cornerstone of Christian communication with God. It’s a direct line to express gratitude, seek guidance, request help, and simply commune with the divine. Through prayer, believers open their hearts, pouring out their concerns, joys, and needs before the Almighty.
Types of Prayer
There are various forms of prayer—adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. Each serves a unique purpose in fostering a holistic connection with God. Adoration uplifts and honors God, confession brings humility and repentance, thanksgiving expresses gratitude, and supplication involves presenting requests and needs.
RCCG SERMONS 2024: THEME: FROM MY NEW POSITION PASTOR E.A ADDBOYE
Fasting: Discipline and Spiritual Awakening
Fasting, on the other hand, involves abstaining from food or certain luxuries for a specific period. It’s an act of discipline, sacrifice, and devotion. While commonly associated with food, fasting can also encompass abstaining from other activities or habits. The intention is to redirect focus from worldly matters towards spiritual nourishment.
The Purpose of Fasting
Fasting is not about mere deprivation but rather a deliberate choice to forgo physical needs for a deeper spiritual encounter. It heightens sensitivity to God’s voice, enhances clarity in seeking His will, and fosters a greater dependency on His sustenance.
The Biblical Significance
Numerous biblical figures engaged in fasting and prayer. Moses fasted for 40 days and nights while seeking God’s guidance. Jesus fasted in the wilderness, setting an example for believers. The early church leaders and disciples practiced fasting alongside prayer to seek divine direction.
The Spiritual Benefits
Prayer and fasting yield profound spiritual benefits. They help individuals align their hearts with God’s purposes, strengthen faith, break strongholds, and bring about personal transformation. Fasting amplifies the power of prayer, intensifying the spiritual connection with God.
Guidelines for Effective Practice
Both prayer and fasting require intentionality and sincerity. Setting aside dedicated time for prayer, choosing specific prayer points, and maintaining a humble and expectant heart are crucial. Similarly, fasting demands proper preparation, physical considerations, and a focus on spiritual goals rather than just abstaining from food or activities.
Prayer and Fasting can help initiate revival and spiritual growth. (Joel 2:12) (Jonah 3:5-10), (2 Chr 7:14) . Fasting and prayer is hard work. It is for mature and strong Christians. During the fast, God may decide to reveal to you to extend the fast to a certain number of days in order to gain quality response from God. As Christians, we need to employ the use of fasting and prayer if we must achieve our destinies. Fasting without a strong need for prayer is like going on a hunger strike. Since fasting and prayer is a good recommendation from the Lord, if you pray and fast very well, God should intervene in your situation. Sometimes the way we fast is not the way God expects us to fast. Some fast like a hypocrite( Matthew 6:16-18). Some convert their inability to access food at home into fasting. Some fast because they don’t feel like eating anything for that period of time.
Tips on establishing a consistent prayer practice
Whichever way you want to fast, let God lead you before taking your own decision. Fasting and Prayer can help us receive clear revelation and direction from God (Acts 13:2). In the church at Antioch( Acts 13:1-3 and Acts 14:21-23), as the people worshipped and fasted together collectively, they received direction and revelation from the Holy Spirit for decisions or tasks ahead of them. The collective prayer and fasting played a vital role in the growth and development of the New Testament church. Prayer and Fasting can also help us to navigate the journey ahead with confidence. According to Ezra 8:21-23, the corporate prayer and fasting that Ezra undertook with his people helped them to navigate the journey ahead with confidence. This action would have been a testimony for the future generation (their little ones) who accompanied them. As we begin the 21-day/14-day prayer and fasting program, we want God to help us to navigate the journey of the year 2024 ahead of us with confidence and dismantle every enemy of our divine performance and haste in Jesus name.
CONCLUSION
Prayer and fasting are integral to the spiritual journey of RCCG members. These practices serve as vital tools for personal and communal growth, fostering a deeper relationship with God, seeking divine direction, and experiencing spiritual breakthroughs. Through these disciplines, RCCG members align themselves with God’s will and purpose, believing in the transformative power of prayer and fasting in their lives and the life of the church.